CHELSEA are mulling over whether or not to loan out Demba Ba to West Brom this summer.

Despite flourishing at Newcastle, Ba has struggled to repeat his goalscoring exploits since his £7.5m switch to the Blues, and netted just twice in the Premier League in the second half of last season.

Ba was continually rotated with then interim manager preferring to play Fernando Torres as the lone forward.

Romelu Lukaku became a fans' favourite after hitting 17 goals in the Premier League for the Baggies, and Steve Clarke admitted he wished he could have kept the powerful forward for another season.

Clarke, who was previously an assistant manager at Chelsea, is hoping to use his links with the club to facilitate a loan move.

Romelu Lukaku was a big hit at West Brom last term

West Brom eye up loan move for Demba Ba

Reports surfaced over the weekend which suggested that Jose Mourinho is happy to loan out Ba, as he doesn't see him as indispensable to the club.

Mourinho has already been contemplating his first-team plans, and it is the thought the likes of Juan Mata and David Luiz's futures are under threat.